The goal of of the present study is to investigate short-term and long-term functional outcome of a 8-bed, multidisciplinary pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) of a general hospital 300 PICU patients were enrolled prospectively in this observational cohort study. Functional outcome was evaluated through Pediatric Cerebral Performance Category (PCPC) and Pediatric Overall Performance Category (POPC) scales at admission (baseline), at PICU and hospital discharge, at 3 and 6 months, and at 1 and 2 years. Delta DPCPC and DPOPC alterations at discharge were related to major diagnostic categories and 2-year survival.Baseline PCPC and POPC scores were normal in 67% and 58.7% of study population, mild disability were recorded in 17.3% and 14.7%, moderate disability at 8% and 14%, severe disability at 4.3% and 9.3% and coma at 3.3% and 3.3%, respectively.

The purpose of this study (prospective one year study of all patients requiring a central line) is to present central line colonization, central line infection, central line-associated and catheter-related bloodstream infection rates, risk factors, and the outcomes in a multidisciplinary Greek pediatric intensive care unit.

CLABSI rate in our study is higher than the international standards. Preventive measures, such as improvements in central line insertion and maintenance bundles of care, are necessary, to lower this baseline rate in future comparisons.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the performance of the Pediatric Risk of Mortality (PRISM III–24) in a Greek pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). We prospectively followed 300 PICU patients in an observational cohort study. PRISM III-24 performance was assessed in the whole population and in 4 preselected groups (infants, patients with length of PICU stay > 4 days, patients with co-morbidities, ventilated patients) with standard discrimination and calibration me-thods.

Treating children in an intensive care unit aims at the reversal of physiologic derangement of their organism while caring for comfortable physical and psychological environment. Any correctable environmental and physical factors causing discomfort should be addressed before the introduction of effective analgesia and sedation by pharmacological means; a normal schedule for sleep is desirable, and attention should be paid to the provision of feeding and hydration, lighting, environmental noise and the temporal orientation of the patients.